Thumbtack, Inc.

Pros beware. I was irritated with a recent experience and left a bad review in the heat of the moment. While the pro should have been better at communicating it was also partially my fault for providing a bad number during the early stages of the estimate (I'm paranoid...sue me).
I attempted to correct my bad deed by adding to or editing my review but Thumbtack wouldn't let me even though I clearly explained how I violated their policies. Here is the convo for what it's worth.
Thumbtack Support:
Hi. I'm Donna from Thumbtack Support. Thanks for reaching out. I'd be eager to help. Can I have your email address please?
[email protected]
Me:
Dont send me any spam por favor
Thumbtack Support:
No worries. Is this a review for Robson?
Me:
Yep!
Thumbtack Support:
I’m grateful the pro helped improve the situation after you left a review, and it’s great that they took care of the problem.
However, we think your initial review is still a valid reflection of your experience, and could be useful for other customers to know about.
Because we want to maintain an environment of honesty, our policy is to not edit o delete reviews.
Me:
Okay then I'd like to leave another one
The two star rating no longer reflects the service they provided
Thumbtack Support:
I do understand and we're glad that the pro was able to rectify the issue. However, you can only post a review once.
Me:
Could you get someone with more authority to text me please? The pro had a wrong phone number for me...so my review is inaccurate. In spirit of honesty I'd like to add some honesty to my review...honestly.
Thumbtack Support:
I hear you. Would you like to have someone to call you back instead?
Me:
Sure
Thumbtack Support:
Can you show me a proof that the pro provided you an incorrect phone number?
Me:
I provided them an incorrect phone number lol...look at our convo. I gave them a 555 number which is fake (the ones they use in the movies). I told them to update it later when I decided to hire them and I guess they didn't update it everywhere. I can show you the text message where they said they tried to call me on the 555 number...
Thumbtack Support:
Oh, yeah! We'll take a look into this and investigate. Would it be okay if messaged you back once we know more?
Me:
Sounds good
Thumbtack Support:
Perfect! I'll have my team review this and will message you as soon as I got a feedback.
In the meantime. is there anything else that I can assist you with?
Me:
Nope! That's it.
Thumbtack Support:
Thanks! Feel free to contact us again if you questions. We're always here to help. Have a great night! :)
Me (a couple of days later):
So uhh any update to me requesting that I be able to add/update/remove my review?
Thumbtack Support:
Thanks again for reaching out. We've shared this with the appropriate team. Upon further investigation, we found the review didn't violate our content policy.
As such, we are unable to remove the review. You'll find more information about our content and review policy here: [redacted]
The pro can explain what happened by responding publicly to your review, which they can do from their end.
Me:
Umm what? I lied to them about my phone number and then posted a bad review. How does that not violate your policy?
Thumbtack Support:
The review wasn't just about the incorrect phone number. It also explains the pro wasn't answering your phone calls, which we assume is true.
Me:
Well it was a bit exaggerated...I only called twice and they have a answering machine.
I was just annoyed that it happened twice in a row and I'm a bit of a hot head
So now I'm just [redacted] over the pro for no reason with that review and y'all are letting it stand...
Reading the policy it looks like I violated it...as the review didn't actually represent my experience
Thumbtack Support:
I understand. We still feel that this review is valid because the pro should have contact you back, even if you called just once. However, in light of recent
info you shared, I'll be talking to my team about this as well and see where we go from there. I'll reach out to you again soon.
Me:
I mean suspend my account if you have to. Like I said I was being a hot head and I lied in my review...clearly breaking the policy you linked me to.
Thumbtack Support:
We'll look into this again and see what can be done about the recent review you've submitted. When we get an update, we'll let you know.
Me:
Okay should I check back in like a day or so? I don't enjoy sitting around waiting with no time frame...
Thumbtack Support:
It typically takes 2 to 3 business days for us to look into this. Sorry I wasn't able to clarify this with you earlier.
Me:
??
Thumbtack Support:
Hi Brandon. Good morning. Upon further investigation we can't delete the review. You're review is still a valid reflection of your experience.
Me:
Alright. Thanks for looking into it. Do you mind if I post this convo in a review of thumbtack? I'd like to make sure others are aware of the flaw of thumbtack reviews! Anyone can post a bad review for a pro they didn't even hire.
Thumbtack Support:
You are always welcome. I'm sorry that we are unable to edit/remove the review for you.
For your reference, please know that right now, the option to review a pro will actually only appear once the quote of the pro is marked as hired on the site.
We understand and respect your intention so feel free to post this in your review of Thumbtack.
I'll also make sure that your feedback is shared to our team so they can take look at our review guidelines and make it more helpful to our pros and customers.
If you have any suggestion or other feedback on how we can improve the site, please let me know.
Me:
Thanks, I created another account and posted a second review explaining what happened so it shouldn't be a problem for the pro anymore. Only other suggestion is to make it clear that you can only post one review and it's final. It's pretty silly IMO that you can't at least append to a review...I mean my experience with the pro didn't end where the review suggests it did.
Thumbtack Support:
You're welcome and thank you again for sharing your thoughts about this. We appreciate it.
Currently, we place a note in every pro's review page saying that once the review is posted, it can no longer be edited.
[redacted]
I agree that it'll be even more helpful if we specify that customers can only post one final review. We'll make sure to look into this for you.
Me:
I guess I missed that! I'll be more wary in the future.
Thumbtack Support:
Thank you for your helpful suggestion. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know and I'll do my best to assist you.
We'll also make sure to look for more ways to improve the review process on the site. If there's anything that I can help you with, please let me know.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/07/23) */
Hello [redacted],
Thank you for your feedback about our site. We are always interested in how we can improve our business and we appreciate any suggestions that can help us make things better.
Our goal at Thumbtack is to connect...

customers who need help with their personal projects to professionals who can assist them. We are always interested in how we can make the entire experience better, so we regularly reach out to both customers and professionals to find out how we can improve. I think you have some valid points that we should consider.
I know you are concerned that in order to be successful on Thumbtack, you are going to have to seriously undervalue your services in order to stand a chance of being hired. I am happy to say that we have researched this specific concern and while the customers on our site have various reasons for selecting the professionals they hire, I can tell you that price isn't often the determining factor. Most customers are looking for a quality experience for a reasonable price. It often isn't the lowest priced quote that gets hired. If you would like to discuss ways to help improve your chances of being hired, I invite you to contact our Customer Support group who would be happy to share best practices with you. They can be reached at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
I really appreciate your suggestions and the opportunity we had to discuss them directly over the phone. As we discussed, I have passed [redacted] feedback along to the appropriate group for consideration.
If you have any other questions or suggestions, please don't hesitate to reach out to me.
[redacted]
Thumbtack Support Team
XXX-XXX-XXXX
[redacted]@thumbtack.com
www.thumbtack.com
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/07/29) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Clearly Thumbtacks response did not address my complaint. The complaint is that they don't disclose to Service Requestors that the bidders are being charged. A laymen will think its a free search and bid process because it doesn't say it anywhere on the site that bidders are being charged! Thumbtack has no ethics and doesn't care that they're stealing hard working self-employed professional money. I know they are being deceitful from talking with their rep on the phone. Its a matter of profits. Being a capitalistic society, I can't blame them. So unfortunately, until a better website comes along, were stuck with this middle-man race to 5 bids for a cold lead service. Hopefully someone will sue them in the near future and send these cockroaches running from their big homes in silicon valley, built from scheming the working class.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/08/06) */
Hello [redacted],
I appreciate your follow up. I understand your frustration, especially based on the experience that you have described.
I wanted to clarify that our focus is to help professionals like yourself be successful. Taking advantage of those same professionals by trying to trick them into quoting isn't going to be a successful, long term strategy. Our goal is to become the largest and most successful services marketplace. We can only achieve that by creating long term relationships with our professionals.
We appreciate you giving us a chance to help you and your feedback on how we can improve. Your suggestion have been passed [redacted] to the appropriate parties for consideration.
If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to let us know.
[redacted]
Thumbtack Support Team
XXX-XXX-XXXX
[redacted]@thumbtack.com
www.thumbtack.com

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/03/05) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted] CRS
Contact Email: [redacted]@thumbtack.com
Hi [redacted],
I am writing to you in response to your complaint to the Revdex.com against Thumbtack. I am sorry for the poor experience you had using Thumbtack and hope...

that I am able to help answer your questions and concerns. Please note that your complaints and feedback have been heard and our request form team will implement a few of your suggestions within the next week.
I would like to first apologize for failing to provide you with a great customer service experience. Our email and phone teams were not properly equipped to handle the spike in ticket volume that stemmed from our company's significant growth in the past few months. We are actively hiring and building out our customer support team in order to prevent this from happening in the future. Our goal is to provide a fantastic customer service experience each and every time you contact Thumbtack.
As you may know, we allow our service professionals to ask their customers a free 'Suggested Question' before paying to submit a quote. Although we ask clients about their needs in the job request flow, we may have missed asking an important question, especially if their request is unique. If a client's request is missing details you need to know if you are a good fit for the job, suggest a question to ask the client. I noticed that you emailed our customer support team about a particular deleted question in which you were asking how many rooms needed to be cleaned; this question was deleted because another service professional had already asked that same question, however it was still in a 'pending approval' status and therefore not posted at the time. I completely understand that this is a frustrating experience since you aren't able to view pending questions, however we will not ask a customer the same question twice.
I am sorry that your feedback has not been implemented in the last few years. We truly appreciate your suggestions and please rest assured that it has been passed on to our request form team. I have personally forwarded your recent suggestions regarding the number of rooms to our request form manager who is actively updating these forms on a daily basis. Please note that she has agreed to update the carpet cleaning form within the next week. Our team agrees that this information is an integral factor in determining the an accurate quote to provide the customer.
I'd like to clarify that our customer support and 'Suggested Questions' agents are located in the Philippines, however our request form team is located in our San Francisco office. There is absolutely no english language barrier and are working feverishly to update our job request forms. Please also note that they are also researching our 'Suggested Questions' history in order to understand what questions are necessary across all Thumbtack service categories.
We are a small company with a big mission. We are actively refining and improving our process of connecting service professionals and consumers, as it's important to us that we create as many great customer experiences as we can. As a token of appreciation, I've gone ahead and credited your account with a few complimentary Thumbtack credits. I hope we were able to resolve your issues, and please do not hesitate to reach out directly if you have any other questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
[redacted] CRS
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2014/03/12) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I have read the response and I do not "totally" disregard the entire response, they seem to have address "some" of the issues.
This company stated that vendors are able to ask/suggest questions to prospective customers without being charged. This is not entirely true. ONLY when a vendor asks a question viz computer is this an option where the vendor is not charged. When a vendor is in the field and must use smart phones or tablets (as nearly all vendors in today's world are), we ARE required to pay to simply ask for additional information.
This company has gotten multiple questions to prospects from me which were totally disregarded (and not previously aasked). I forwarded these instances to the the company in a response to their email.
While I do believe this company has a service model that "could" benefit greatly customers and vendors, they are NOT acting on complaints or issues brought to their attention. They state they are a small company so it should not take 2 years to make corrections as has been my experieince with them.
I would ask they make ALL necessary corrections before they offer a partially correct response (i.e. make sure that we are NOT charged on any form of media for asking questions, etc.).
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2014/03/23) */
Hi [redacted],
Thank you for your response. I am sorry that my response did not address all of your concerns - I have personally responded to your emails and was able to implement your specific feedback into our request forms. I am personally forwarding your emails to our request form manager who has agreed to expedite these particular issues. As always, please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.
I'd like to clarify that our suggested questions forum is available on mobile. I sent you an email and would love to help you find this feature on your mobile device. The pricing and feature availability are identical on mobile and computer. Please note that we are about to release an iPhone application for our service professionals in a few months!
We take complaints very seriously at Thumbtack. We are currently experiencing a tremendous amount of growth and have built our customer service and operation teams accordingly. We've grown from 15 to 60 employees in the past few months; we acknowledge that we haven't acted on this feedback in an efficient manner and now have enough staff to process and implement feedback from service professionals like yourself. Just to let you know, we receive feedback and complaints across all of our service categories and have updated nearly 75 request forms in the past two weeks. We are working hard and encourage you to keep sending any feedback.
Best regards,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/11/02) */
Hello [redacted],
Thank you for reaching out to us Through the Revdex.com and for speaking with me over the phone as well. I am glad we were able to speak and come to a resolution that you were happy with. I would also like to...

address your concerns here.
I can understand your concerns and want to assure you that all requests submitted through Thumbtack go through a verification process that is both automated and manual. We do not allow fake requests on Thumbtack, and if such a request is found, it is deleted and any professionals who may have quoted on that request are refunded. Though we have this verification process, we encourage all professionals to report any requests that seem suspicious and our team will look into them carefully.
If you or any other Thumbtack professionals have questions, I encourage you to reach out to our customer support team who is trained to be very helpful. You may reach them by phone at XXX-XXX-XXXX or email at [redacted]@Thumbtack.com. Thank you again for reaching out to us.
I wish you the best of luck with your business.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Thumbtack Support
XXX-XXX-XXXX
[redacted]@Thumbtack.com
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/11/03) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
[redacted] is a great asset to Thumbtack. I appreciate her dealing with me in a positive manner. I consider the case closed

Hello [redacted],Thank you for reaching out to us through the Revdex.com about your concerns. I would like to address them here.At Thumbtack, we respect the professionals who use our site. This is why each request that is submitted to us goes through a verification process...

that is both maual and automated. With that being said, we encourage all professionals to report anything that looks suspicious and we will look into it right away. We do not allow fake requests on Thumbtack and reserve the right to take action if they are found. We want the professionals who use Thumbtack to get hired as often as possible. This is why we have created articles that are based in research to help professionals get hired. These articles can be seen in a section of our website called our Pro Center here: [redacted]/. We also have hired and trained a top quality customer support team to help professionals. They can be reached at [redacted] and support[redacted] We encourage any professionals who are struggling to get hired on Thumbtack or who have questions to reach out to us. We are happy to help. Sincerely,[redacted]Thumbtack [email protected][redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/04/17) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted] CRS
Contact Email: [redacted]@thumbtack.com
Dear [redacted],
I am writing to you in response to your Revdex.com complaint against Thumbtack. My name is [redacted] and I've previously communicated with you through...

Thumbtack support in the past. I apologize for the poor experience you had with Thumbtack and hope that I am able to address all of your questions and concerns. Please note that I've reached out to multiple departments within our company, including the engineering, marketing, and operation teams. I've gathered detailed information about our landing pages and hope I am able to address all of your concerns.
Thumbtack is free to signup and you do not have to pay to be listed on the Thumbtack "Top Professionals" list. Several customers on this page have been listed on our site for years and have never been a paying client.
The Thumbtack business listing works in a similar to the way Google organically ranks websites for the keyword "dog training in [redacted]". Google ranks sites based upon hundreds or variables and one of them is location. The dog trainers don't necessarily have to be in the city or zip code, rather they are able to service customers in that particular location. It is a reasonable expectation that dog trainers, dog walkers, plumbers, contractors and other service professionals are willing to travel. The number one ranked site on Google for "dog training in [redacted]" does not have a business address in the city, but they are willing to travel to the customer to train the pet.
Here's some more information about how business listings in search and landing pages:
Google likes to give it's users options to decide which dog trainer will suit their needs the best. Rather than show only a few dog trainers that may have a narrower range of skills or prices in [redacted] it will show 20-30 dog trainers willing to travel to the city with a broader range of skills and prices.
The business owner's website still ranks very high for a broad range of dog trainer keywords in the [redacted] area.
You mentioned that our listed services contain fraudulent and unverified reviews. We take reviews very seriously here at Thumbtack, and only allow reviews that are submitted by actual Thumbtack customers who were introduced to the professional in review. Additionally, Thumbtack professionals have the ability to send a unique 'review url' to their past clients which helps build up their reputation when they initially join Thumbtack. This tool helps is beneficial for Thumbtack professionals since our customers value reviews when determining which professional they would like to hire. I encourage you to utilize this feature if you decide to use Thumbtack in the future.
Thank you so much for your feedback. We are working hard to create a great experience for both our service professionals and consumers, as well as create a fair marketplace. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
[redacted], CRS
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (4200, 12, 2014/04/24) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
A resolution requires that both parties compromise. The response of Thumbtack offers none. Per the Revdex.com guidelines,deceptive advertising by it's members is not allowed. Thumbtack has failed to address why it should be allowed to publish falsehoods that damage my business and deceive consumers. They cite Google guidelines and their reading of the laws regarding libel as their justification for stating falsehoods. I contend that Revdex.com members, as I am, are held to an overriding ethical standard which makes their argument both irrelevant, evasive and patently bogus. Accordingly, under the rules of Revdex.com membership I would ask that either Thumbtack cease their deceptive advertising or agree to binding arbitration as set forth in the rules of membership of the Revdex.com. Should they fail to agree to binding arbitration, I seek that their membership in the Revdex.com be revoked and their Revdex.com rating be revised to a "F" to accurately warn others that Thumbtack wantonly engages in unethical and deceptive business practices.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 15, 2014/05/01) */
Hi [redacted],
I'm sorry that you feel our response was not adequate. We've provided an explanation of our SEO listings and are unable to further elaborate on the exact methodology that is used in determining these rankings. Again, please note that we are well within Google's guidelines of non-deceptive SEO language, and we post these listings in order to attract customers to Thumbtack. This is healthy competition, and our end goal is to help our professionals get hired on Thumbtack.
At this point, I do not think there any further information we can provide to alleviate your concerns. We are incredibly sorry that you've experienced so much frustration with Thumbtack. We appreciate your passion [redacted] your profession and wish you much success in your business.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/06/16) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted] CRS
Contact Email: [redacted]@thumbtack.com
Dear [redacted],
I am writing to you in response to your Revdex.com complaint against Thumbtack. I apologize for the poor experience you had using Thumbtack and hope that...

I am able to address all of your questions and concerns. Please note that I've refunded your entire Thumbtack purchase history, which includes your credits and background check verification; these funds will post to your bank account within a few business days.
I do want to strongly convey that we are not in the business of scamming our professionals. Not only is it fundamentally against what we stand for here at Thumbtack, it wouldn't make sense from a business perspective either. Our goal is to be the online marketplace for local services. We can only grow if we are connecting real, serious customers with real, quality professionals. Spending time, effort, and funds on creating fake leads simply isn't a winning strategy. We spend a lot of time talking to professionals who have seen a lot of success on Thumbtack - we're proud of them and you can see some of their stories here:
http://www.thumbtack.com/pros/stories.
I looked into your Thumbtack account was able to find your bidding history. I understand your frustration in not hearing back from these customers, however please note that even our most successful professionals do not hear back from some of their customer leads as well. Although we are working hard to improve customer communication, it is ultimately up to the customer as to whether or not they would like to send a response.
If you decide to continue using Thumbtack, I recommend sending follow-up messages to your customers and adding more pictures / videos to the 'Media' section of your profile. We've noticed that professionals with complete profiles are more likely to get hired on Thumbtack. Also, please note that customers often reply within the Thumbtack messenger before calling our professionals directly. The customer ultimately decides if they'd like to include their contact information in the request - we've implemented this feature since it's a better overall experience for the customer.
Thank you so much, again, for your feedback. We are working hard to create a great experience for both our professionals and customers, however, sometimes we do not get it right. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I'm happy to offer you a few complimentary Thumbtack credits should you decide to continue using our site.
Sincerely,
[redacted] CRS
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2014/06/17) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Thank you for your response. I respect and take you at your word. Thank you for the refund.
Please understand where I was coming from when I filed my complaint. While I understand that you "can't always believe what you read" floating out on the internet regarding reviews of companies, but once I say the idea of fake leads floating out there, I became a bit fearful...the idea had not even occurred to me, and I was upset with myself for not doing more research first before purchasing the credits....In this day of electronic communication, it just seems that the ability to take advantage of business owners would be all to simple of a process, through an auto-generation of leads process. Please understand that for a small business such as my own, one could easily spend a sizeable investment in simply being allowed to contact the leads, without ever hearing back for whatever reason, and it was this thought of losing such an investment that motivated my concern. While I realize that your company, other than the testimonies, has no way of verifying the leads, I will trust that others have successfully used the website based upon your response.
I will speak reputably about your company and continue to discern if this is an approach that would be profitable for my music studio's growth. Thank you for your time and attention, and also for the suggestions for building my profile.
best wishes,
R. [redacted]

I submitted an inquiry today searching for someone to clean my house. Within minutes, I received a couple of very professional emails responding to my request.
Each of these ladies would have done a wonderful job, but I could only choose one. I had absolutely no idea that I was costing these hard working businesswomen
money just for offering me a quote.
The only reason I know now is because my curiosity led me to do some research on this business. I needed the services because we have not lived in this area very !ong.
For what it's worth, people might have more respect if they were aware of the facts. I feel like sending the other responders the money they lost on me!
I am not kidding, spamming, scamming, hoaxing, or any other word you can think of for lying.
Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read my thoughts. Obviously, I do not know how to run a business, but there must be a better way.

Sincerely,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/03/23) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted] CRS
Contact Email: [redacted]@thumbtack.com
Dear [redacted],
I am writing to you in response to your Revdex.com complaint against Thumbtack. I apologize for the poor experience you had using Thumbtack and hope that I...

am able to address all of your questions and concerns. Please note that I have processed your refund request, which brings your total refund to $52.98. This accounts for all of your Thumbtack credit purchases and the funds will be posted to your bank account within a few days.
Thumbtack is currently focusing to create new features that will improve customer communication. We understand how concerning it must be to not hear anything back from your customer leads, however please understand that these customers may have hired another pro or are simply not interested in any of the quotes that were submitted. We are currently creating new processes that will provide our service pros with this feedback; we hope that this will educate our contractors to submit higher quality bids as well as understand why they didn't land the job. We will inform our service pros when these changes have been made and updated.
I do want to strongly convey that we are not in the business of scamming our service professionals. Not only is it fundamentally against what we stand for here at Thumbtack, it wouldn't make sense from a business perspective either. Our goal is to be the online marketplace for local services. We can only grow if we are connecting real, serious customers with real, quality service professionals. Spending time, effort, and funds on creating fake leads simply isn't a winning strategy. We spend a lot of time talking to service professionals who have seen a lot of success on Thumbtack - we're proud of them and you can see some of their stories here:
http://www.thumbtack.com/pros/stories.
Thank you so much, again, for your feedback. We are working hard to create a great experience for both our service professionals and consumers, however, sometimes we do not get it right. If you'd like to continue using Thumbtack for your business, please let me know and I'd be more than happy to credit your account with complimentary Thumbtack credits. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Sincerely,
[redacted] CRS

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/12/12) */
Hi [redacted],
We appreciate you reaching out through the Revdex.com about your concerns with Thumbtack. We want every professional to feel they are heard when it comes to an issue. I'm glad we were able to talk on the phone and come to a positive...

resolution. Here is a small outline of what we discussed.
When a customer places a request we give them the opportunity to fill out a form to explain what services they are needing. On the request form for dance lessons they can choose whether they want private lessons, couple lessons, lessons in a small group, lessons in a large group or lessons as recommended by instructor. We encourage professionals to only respond to requests they feel perfectly match the services they provide. Our request forms aren't perfect, we are continuously improving them to better the experience of using Thumbtack.
Our goal is to help professionals grow their businesses while making it easier for customers to hire professionals to complete their personal projects. When a customer is placing a request, we walk them through how Thumbtack works; they will receive quotes within 24 hours, once they have their quotes they can review professionals' messages, profiles and reviews, then they can hire the right professional for them. Once the request is placed, it goes through an extensive verification process before it is sent to our professionals. Try as we might, just like any system, our verification process isn't perfect. If a professional is ever in question of the authenticity of a request, we encourage them to reach out to us so we can further investigate.
We understand that is it extremely frustrating when a customer does not respond. In an effort to diminish these frustrations, we reach out to customers by email reminding them to update the status of their request. When they make an update, customers are offered a variety of options to choose from so they can notify professionals of where they are at with hiring someone for those services.
We want every professional on Thumbtack to feel like their money is well invested when sending quotes. Our Support Team is available to provide guidance and reassurance whenever needed. We also have developed our Pro Center to include tips and tricks we have learned over the last 5 years. I am glad we were able to talk about your concerns and come to a resolution.
[redacted]
Thumbtack Support Team
Phone (XXX) XXX-XXXX
E-mail [redacted]@Thumbtack.com
www.thumbtack.com
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2014/12/15) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
While I continue to disagree with the business tactics and the requirment that professionals must pay to reach out to potential customers, I am satisfied with the resolution which was a full refund from Thumbtack.

Thank you for reaching out to us through the [redacted] with your concerns. I would...

like to take a moment to explain more about how the website works.
Thumbtack is an advertising platform that helps professionals connect to new customers. Professionals send quotes to customers, and customers then have the opportunity to view all the information they receive. Based on the information they get, they can determine if a professional would be a good fit for their project. If the customer does not view the quote within 48 hours, the credits used for that quote will then be refunded since an introduction was not made.
It is important to us that the professionals that use our site can find success. We share tips, as they have been proven successful with other professionals on Thumbtack. You can see more of these tips in our Help Center: [redacted]. Our customer support team is here to help professionals succeed as well and can be reached at ([redacted].
Sincerely,
Thumbtack Support
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/23) */
Contact Name and Title: [redacted] MI [redacted] TL
Contact Email: [redacted]@thumbtack.com
Dear [redacted],
I am writing in response to your Revdex.com complaint against Thumbtack. I have attempted to contact you directly to address these concerns, but...

we have been unable to connect. After the complaint with the Revdex.com was submitted I see that you have been in contact with our support team. I hope that many of your concerns have already been resolved, however, to ensure that we address each of your concerns I will respond to them below.
Thumbtack can only be successful if our professionals are successful - that's why we are always working hard to help our professionals get hired as often as possible. We can only grow if we are connecting real, serious customers with real, quality service pros. We spend time, effort, and funds on a request verification process to flag suspicious requests. We then go in and manually check those that have been flagged as suspicious. Only requests that are cleared by these processes are forwarded to our professionals. Of course no system is perfect and we are constantly working to make the process better. The ultimate guide to know if you should submit a quote on a request is you. Professionals can review the request to gauge the customer's involvement. If you decide that you are interested, available and qualified for a request, you have the option to send a customized quote. You get to choose which requests are a good fit - and which you'd like to respond to.
Please allow me to take a moment to clarify the refund policy that applies to Thumbtack Credits. As noted on the page where you submitted your quote, we'll automatically send you an email as soon as your quote is viewed by the customer. If the customer doesn't view your quote within 48 hours of your submission, we'll automatically return the Thumbtack Credits to your account, so you can use them again free of charge on the next work request that interests you. If at any time a professional on Thumbtack feels that a refund should be made they can contact us.
In regards to earning credits while setting up your account there may be a little misunderstanding. You earn points by taking certain actions on Thumbtack to improve your profile, such as adding reviews or photos to your profile. Thumbtack awards Bronze, Silver, or Gold badges to professionals to earn a certain number of points. These badges are our way of identifying the most committed professionals who are serious about delivering quality services through Thumbtack.

Points are not to be confused with credits. Credits are used to send quotes to customers. More information about credits can be found here: http://www.thumbtack.com/pros/credits.
We are a small company with a big mission. We are actively refining and improving our process of connecting professionals and customers, as it's important to us that we create as many great experiences as we can. I hope we were able to resolve your issues, and please do not hesitate to reach out directly if you have any other questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2014/07/25) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
When you called the 1st time I told you I was in a meeting and to call me the next day between 11am-1pm. You called at 9:42 AM that day NOT when you said you would all when I was not available, so if you can't bother to at least honor my request to call when I ask, I no longer wish to talk on the phone. Per my attorney all communication must be in writing to create a history / record of what is discussed.

I still feel based on what is seen that I would believe at least 20% of all requests for quotes for Thumbtack are bogus and designed by Thumbtack to create revenue at the expense of us, the providers.

I have since seen people request the same quote 2-3 times in same day or week. I have seen quotes canceled after viewing them, saying we don't get refund and then the OPs account is gone, the whole thing canceled, and no refund issued after you collected $50.

I think something smells bad here and you have no visible checks and balances for your provides to see who is getting the work, is anyone getting the work, are these real requests. You have no way for us eliminating the bogus ones and wasting time on those who have zero clue to what the want or what things cost.

Been talking to others with similar concerns, their wish is we get an attorney to investigate more, maybe contact the Attorney General and depending on the results look into a class action against Thumbtack to return the funds taken w/o merit.

There is my 2cents. You may write, but as of this email please do not call again.

[redacted] S.
Copy [redacted] & [redacted], Legal File #XXXXXX
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2014/07/31) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Duplicate proposals are received daily with only the slightest of changes allowing others to bid, so based on that instead of 5 quotes they are getting 10 or 15 (possible) if they are even real people which could if not caught cost us 3x the amount to bid on the same job that is most likely never going to happen.
Allowing others to post your "minimum" prices i.e. $400-$600 for a wedding and then int their notes saying "my budget is really $100" is circumventing the system and if not caught makes professionals bid on something that is false.
Allowing 13 y/o girls to post asking to be a model is not something that is of value, and we may not know until after we spent the money
If a bid is declined we need to know why.. not just "cancelled" or "picked another provider" but if you're taking our money we need to know why there is no valued impact, declined do to cost, quality, experience, style, moral grounds, hates short people, what? You're getting providers to toss money into a pit.
Where are any reporting functions to show the overall success rate for our category allowing us to see IF IF IF Thumbtack is valued for our category. If you're collecting $60K a day from Photographers yet photographers are getting $5K a day in work, it's not a good advertising venue for us... w/o this information your ability to glean funds w/o results are vast.
Allowing anyone to ask for quotes w/o any checks or balances in place is a money pit for the vendors, you have addressed the fact by saying "we don't want to charge our customers" but you're opening up the huge pit of fake requests and a financial drain on the vendors, this needs to change and fast. If nothing else a CC on file for the people bidding to at least have a way of showing they are old enough for a CC, because we can't keep tossing money into kids wanting pictures of their birthday. I am tired of placing a bid for an event to hear back "let me ask my parents' You're allowing others to steal our money and you're getting the money.
I can go on for about 20 more reasons. However these need to be addressed publicly or though legal channels soon. There is a growing wave of those who feel as I do, and legal action may soon follow, including detailed audits and financial records and more in discovery if we go to trial or most likely in your agreement binding arbitration.
These things need to be addressed and fixed or at least a way we (providers) can be shown were our money goes, to whom, who gets the work, why they do and we don't so the playing field is level.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 13, 2014/08/05) */
Dear [redacted],
I appreciate your willingness to continue to correspond so that we can answer your questions and resolve your concerns.
Thumbtack cares about the success of our professionals. As we verify customer requests, we remove duplicate requests (from same customer regarding the same service) made within 72 hours of each other. If a duplicate request somehow gets through the request verification process, a professional can contact our support team and request a refund. Duplicate requests are not supposed to get through, but if they do, we will gladly refund the professional.
We don't think you should have to spend your hard-earned money to submit a quote unless you believe the job would be a good fit for you. That's why we pass along a customer's anticipated budget whenever they share this information with us, which you can use to decide whether submitting a quote might be worthwhile for your business. We encourage you to respond only to requests that look like they could turn into viable work. We always encourage our customers to be as accurate as possible in their requests. If for some reason a customer places inaccurate information in a request, so that the request is unusable by the professional, then the professional can contact us and we will refund it. Ultimately, it is the professional's responsibility to quote only on requests that they feel are a good fit.
It is against Thumbtack's terms of use for any individual under the age of 18 to submit a request. If a professionals receives a request from anyone under the age of 18, they can notify the support team. We will always investigate the issue and provide a refund to the professional.
Because the service professional and the customer usually move communication to their own email, or connect via phone after quotes are submitted, we actually have a hard time tracking precisely what happens after the introduction is made. We always encourage customers to update the status of their project as soon as they hire a Thumbtack professional. I understand that not knowing why a quote is cancelled can be frustrating. We are working to improve the feedback process of when and why a pro is hired or not hired on Thumbtack. We strive to help our professionals succeed by teaching them to submit winning quotes and create amazing Thumbtack profiles. For more information, follow these links:
http://www.thumbtack.com/pros/winning-quotes
http://www.thumbtack.com/pros/how-thumbtack-works#get-hired
Thumbtack is not in the business of generating fake leads. We put a lot of time and effort into our request verification process to ensure that legitimate requests reach our professionals. Every customer request goes through this system without exception. All suspicious requests are flagged, reviewed again, and only passed on to professionals if they pass our guidelines. We also recognize that no system is perfect, and if an inaccurate or unusable request (including requests from users under the age of 18) gets through the verification process, a pro can contact our support team, and we will always review it and refund those credits, when appropriate. We currently believe that requiring customers to place a credit card on file would alienate them from the site and therefore, greatly diminish the number of requests Thumbtack can forward to its professionals.
I appreciate you reaching out to clarify your concerns. Thumbtack is dedicated to becoming THE online marketplace for local services. Your feedback along, with all of the feedback from other Thumbtack professionals and customers, helps us become better. If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to let me know.
Sincerely,
Tyler